Dealing With The Demonic - Lesson 3 Series

God’s very essence is love. (1 John 4:8) He has always been love, even before He created you and loved you. He has always sought to have a close relationship with people. You see this truth taught throughout Scripture beginning with Adam in the Garden of Eden, and also in the book of Exodus when Moses climbed Mount Sinai to commune with God.

It was high on a mountaintop where the Lord spoke to Moses and commanded him to tell the Israelites:

"This is what you are to say to the house of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel: 'You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself. Now, if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’” (Ex 19:3-6)

God proved He is love by sending Jesus to walk among us and die in our place. God reached out to us in the most intimate and personal way. John the Beloved shows us in 1 John 3:1-10 that as a result of what Jesus did, we can now, as His children, experience how great the love of the Father is. The wonder of what that means has not yet been entirely made known.

“But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. Everyone who has this hope in him purifies himself, just as he is pure.” (1 John 3:2-3)

Now that we are His children, we can no longer continue to sin in God’s eyes because His seed, His very essence, is now in us. This means that we can’t go on sinning because we have been born of God.

1. Living a life flowing with forgiveness is the distinguishing mark that lets the world know who the children of God are.

—as well as who the children of the devil are!

2. If we do not forgive and seek reconciliation with those who have wronged us, and love them freely, then we are not doing the very thing that proves we are truly children of God.

In 1 John 4:7-21, the Apostle John encourages and challenges us to love others.

John writes: “Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is born of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God--for God is love”.

Because He has loved us so much, we have been “born of God,” so “we surely ought to love each other.” “No one has ever seen God. But if we love each other, God lives in us, and his love has been brought to full expression through us”.

John also tells us that if someone says they love God but hates a Christian brother or sister, “that person is a liar; for if we don't love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we have not seen? (1 John 4:7-21 NLT)

A. DEVELOPING A GREAT RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD THE FATHER

1. Questions to Ponder

• Do you see God as a tyrant? If so, why?

• Do you feel you cannot come to Him for everything? If so, why?

• Do you fear Him to the point of not talking to Him? If so, why?

• Are you mad at God for your life or current situation? If so, name the situation

• Are you unhappy with how He created you? If so, what is it you don’t like about yourself?

• Do you see God as your Heavenly Father? If so, how?

Compare your notes to these truths about who God is: (Where there are scripture references, please take the time to open up the Bible and read for yourself – remember, God’s Word heals and delivers. What we say doesn’t!

"The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but deliverance and victory are of the Lord." (Proverbs 21:31)

B. God’s Plan

For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. You will find me when you seek me, if you look for me in earnest. (Jer 29:11-13 TLB)

“When I think of the wisdom and scope of God's plan, I fall to my knees and pray to the Father, the Creator of everything in heaven and on earth. I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources he will give you mighty inner strength through his Holy Spirit. And I pray that Christ will be more and more at home in your hearts as you trust in him. May your roots go down deep into the soil of God's marvelous love. And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love really is. May you experience the love of Christ, though it is so great you will never fully understand it. Then you will be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.